Tax credits - is this true

[happychappy]

A friend mentioned this, if its true I need to pass it along to a few people. From April 2012 in order to qualified for working families tax credits you have to work 24 hours a week not 16? Anyone?????

If you are a couple, and both working, the total amount of hours worked between you must be 24 per week or more, with one of you working at least 16.

If only one person in the couple is working, they must be working at least 24 hours per week in order to qualify for working tax credits.

ok thanks, thats a good explanation and helpful

No worries :) will it affect you?

yes its true

no me but my sister, shes only working 16hours and BF is a volunteer (aka waste of space) and therefore she will have to up her hours or he will (won't happen) get a job.

And when Universal Credits are introduced in 2013, one partner must be working 35+ hours a week earning at least £17.389 pa, and if not the other partner will be subject to conditionality as well

"In a couple, they will expect one person to be 'nominated' as the 'main carer', who will be treated with the same conditionality levels as a Lone Parent (e.g. expected to find 20 hrs work a week). The other person in the couple will be expected to find work for 35 hrs a week.

So EACH person in the couple faces their own conditionality. So if SAHM doesn't get 20 hrs a week work then she could be made to do 20hrs/week Workfare. If the Dad doesn't get 35hrs/week work, then HE could be made to do 35 hrs Workfare...

It is all a moot point, provided the Household earns over £17,389 pa. Once you hit that income, there will be no conditionality applied to your UC claim"

From this thread www.mumsnet.com/Talk/politics/a1359182-Too-Many-Cuts-come-join-the-Frothers-and-have-your-say#28966317

TBH where we lived before you get absolutely nothing so its better than a kid in the teeth. However, its in my opinion it's this government f**king up what helps those on the poverty line out of the poverty line. Its very annoying because they are all rich boys (and some girls) who have never and will never know what it's like to worry about money and live hand to mouth. Their idea of poverty is weather they can afford the nanny as well as the school fees.
Anyway rant over

Anyone know how this will affect lone parents?

jenni75 Lone parents with youngest child over 12 will be expected to work full time

With a child between 5 and 12 expected to work 24 hours per week

Under UC there will be earning criteria too, which if you don't meet you will be expected to find a better paying job or take a second job.

I've read the white paper on Universal Credit, and looked elsewhere online, and nowhere does it say that lone parents with a child over 5 will have to work 24 hours per week.

The Universal Credit will be the best thing that helps people get out of the poverty trap and into jobs. The conditionalities mean that there is a genuine incentive to work and less scope to opt out. The policies of the last administration deliberately kept people down. They were also 'rich boys and girls', make no mistake about that, but the difference was that they wanted the poor to stay poor rather than become self-sufficient.

jenni I just rang HM Customs and they confirmed the 24 hour working week applies to couples but NOT lone parents - phew !

Will the lone parent conditionality be based on number of hours or on pay you earn? I do various jobs at various times of year; some of which pay a lot more than others. Some employed, some self employed. I really can't work out how this will affect me from 2013 onwards.

How deranged that they expect people to find a better paying job.

Why, I might just become a hedge fund manager! Don't know why I've not done it before actually. I've just preferred doing admin all this time but I suppose I should really suck it up and earn £1k an hour .

What an utter load of bollocks CES.

And where are these "better paying jobs"?

Make no mistake about it, the Tories look after their own, ie the rich. Don't want to have them paying welfare costs for the great unfortunate and unwashed, do we?

An honest election slogan for them would be "If you are down, we'll kick you".

"where are the jobs that these people are going to have to take in order to get UC."

(And I didn't say 'better paying') The jobs will be there when the economy recovers in the next few years. If there are no jobs to go into of course the credits won't be withdrawn. That's only commonsense. But if jobs are there and are offered they must not be turned down. Also commonsense. The last administration spent a of the money generated by the boom paying far too many people to sit about doing nothing.... and look where it got us.

What about people who are self employed? I work more then 30 hours a week but I earn nothing like that.

I thought we were possibly going to have a double dip recession.

Some of my work is self employed too, just to make my working situation even more complicated. Bet no one will know what to do with me tbh.

I can't find any information on what they are planning for self employed people. I'm also a disabled single mother so it's a triple whammy. I can't work any more then I am doing, I earn very little at the moment though.

More cack-handed social-policy.

Absolutely Witch. I wish I could move. I bet Scotland won't be subjected to all of this shit.

Is that true that come 2013 a lone parent with a child 12 or over will need to work full time?

My DD will turn 12 that year and I currently work PT while doing a degree, as my employer is paying for my degree I am committed to stay in post for a set time after I graduate or I will be liable to pay back all course fees.

So not only will I need to find a new job, I will also need to pay back thousands!

Quite scary peace, i really worry for all the people who be be affected by the HB changes next year. Just so bloody damaging.